Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2135   $125.00

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length 8 1/2 inches, weight 2.8 Troy ounces, no monogram, a few minor knife cuts on the tines (ask us very nicely and we'll polish these out a bit) but excellent overall condition.

If ever an item cried out to be given as a wedding gift, this it.

Old Friends  
1572f   $ 55

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Originated in 1894, "Verona" bespeaks its late Victorian vintage. It incorporates a variety of scroll, leaf and floral elements in an intricate portraiture. The maker was A.F. Towle, which later became Lunt. This example is a 5 1/4" long tea infuser. The lidded bowl is particularly decorative, with a finely engraved surface complimenting patterned piercings. It latches with a clip. The piece is in flawless condition and without a monogram or removal. There is no evident polishing wear and... Click for details

Old Friends  
1569fe   $ 70

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In pristine condition, and without a monogram or removal, this original example of Alvin's Art Nouveau "Old Orange Blossom" measures 6" long and weighs a relatively heavy 1.2 T. oz. It is marked with the finely lettered words "Patent" and "Sterling" as would be expected, along with the three part Alvin emblem. All the elements of the floral design retain their sharply defined and detailed elements, including those that so artfully extend onto the scallop shaped bowl. The shoulders have slight... Click for details

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2134   $225.00

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round upturned end with full front midrib and thirteen-lobed shell drop, length 4 5/8 inches, engraved with initials "D N", weight .32 oz Troy, some annoying abrasions in bowl but very good overall condition.

Faithful readers of our little web page know we never tire of mentioning that Burt was a substantial and by all reports jovial fellow who weighed three hundred and eighty pounds.

Old Friends  
1567fa   $ 135

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Measuring 5 1/8" long and weighing not quite .4 T. oz. (11 grams), this marrow spoon is unusual for its size. It is essentially a miniature version of a form that is typically much larger, often twice as long and proportionally wider and heavier. It is English in origin, with hallmarks for sterling, a date letter for 1812, a regent's head, and "SA" for London maker Stephen Adams. It is an Old English design with a down turned, reverse tipt end. The front of the handle is engraved in a period... Click for details

Old Friends  
1563fa   $ 165

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Commonly referenced as a claret spoon, one reliable online source prefers to identify this 11 3/4" long, 2.6 T. oz., piece as a lemonade soon, while another suggests it was intended for a mixture of fruits and berries soaked in alcohol, in the manner of sangria, rather than wine. Indeed, the 3" long, 1 3/4" at the widest, bowl on this would be too large and sharply angled to fit in a claret decanter, but it would fit a pitcher. It was made by Arthur Stone whose "hammer over name" mark appears ... Click for details

Old Friends  
1562fw   $ 725 set

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Marked with both Philadelphia's George Sharp's "double lion and S" and "Patent" marks as well as "Tiffany & Co.," this salad serving fork and spoon have a double provenance that bespeaks the finest of mid 19th century silver manufacturing and retailing. Curiously, they are not stamped "Sterling," which standard Tiffany typically required in the 1860's from which they date, so they are possibly coin silver rather than sterling. They are exceptionally large items, with the fork measuring 10 3/4"... Click for details

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2133   $75.00

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length 5 5/8 inches, weight .45 oz. Troy, pointed downturned end with rounded drop and thirteen-lobed shell below, excellent condition, monogrammed "B".

Come ye citizens of Portsmouth and reclaim thy heritage!!

Old Friends  
1559fa   $ 60

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This 5 1/16" long, just under .6 T. oz., egg spoon is fully marked for sterling (seated Britannia), Dublin, 1834, and with a maker's mark of "PW" for Peter Weeks whose dates correspond with the piece. It has an "eagle with upraised wings" crest on the front, and the initials "J.D" inscribed at the join with the bowl on the reverse. It is in very good condition. They form is excellent, with no bends, breaks, or burrs. There is some overall softening of detail from polishing. The bowl is well... Click for details

Old Friends  
1557fl   $ 35

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Measuring 4 3/4" long and weighing .6 T. oz., this piece was made by Gorham. The pattern is "Lancaster" sometimes referred to as "Lancaster Rose," reflecting the rose cluster that adorns the end of the beaded border handle. The size of a bon bon, the bowl does not match the lattice work pattern of the bon bon illustrated in the early Gorham catalogs. It is in fact more refined and this may technically be a nut or almond spoon. The edge is scalloped and the interior has a variety of piercings... Click for details

Bruce Cherner Antique Silver  
2130   $24.00

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Many of our faithful readers have no doubt been wondering, "Has Cherner resigned, retired, been fired, got tired or perhaps become discouraged with the overall lack of interest in antiques unless they are being chased by strange folks on the telly"? Well, no, we actually took a bit of vacation and mostly stayed out of the shops so have little new to show but this lone Tiffany spoon.

If the hostess gift still lives,... Click for details

Old Friends  
1553f   $ 95 HOLD

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This sterling silver spoon bears the mark "W[illiam]. Faber & Sons," for a well-known and well-regarded Philadelphia silver firm whose dates cover roughly the middle third of the 19th century. It is an 8 1/2" long, 1.8 T. oz. serving spoon. The form seems to be indigenous to Philadelphia as it shows up only on pieces from that area. It has a shallow, actually flat with a slight scoop to it, bowl that has a scalloped upper edge. It may be an ice cream server. The handle and interior of the b... Click for details

Old Friends  
1551fa   $ 55

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"Honeysuckle" may be the only pattern that Whiting produced in silverplate and sterling, with examples of the latter far less common than the former. This piece is a 6 7/8" long, weighty, 1.3 T. oz., dessert spoon marked "Sterling," with the Whiting logo, "Pat. App'l. For," indicating it is early in the line run, and the name of the retailer, "Hamilton Rowe & Co." The portraiture is true to life, with the honeysuckle blossoms, buds, leaves, and stems set against a stippled ground. The lower p... Click for details

Old Friends  
1548fa   $ 150

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Numbered sequentially H106, H107, and H108, this knife, fork, and spoon respectively appear in Gorham's 1902 catalog along with a set of children's holloware (see accompanying image 4). They are charming items, having plain handles with notched ends and cast and applied children's faces. These are fashioned in a Kate Greenaway style and portray a girl on the spoon and knife, and a boy on the fork. They are substantially sized, with the knife measuring 7 3/8" long, the spoon 6 1/4", and the fo... Click for details

Old Friends  
1546f   $ 95

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A premier name from the mid 19th century well into the 20th century, Boston's Bigelow, Kennard & Co. served a market that was increasingly eager and able to procure fine goods, of which this 9" long, weighty, 2.2 T. oz., serving spoon is an example. The design is characteristic of a Boston style especially popular in the 1860's leading into the 1870's. The handle is basically "Old English" with a tipt backside. The bowl is eggplant shaped and plain. The distinguishing feature on these pieces... Click for details

Old Friends  
1542f   $ 95

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The smaller of two fish knives Durgin offered in its "Chrysanthemum" line, this piece measures 7 1/2" long and is very heavy, weighing just under 2.0 T. oz. It is flat handled and solid sterling silver. It is inscribed "Groff" in a feathered script on the blade, and "1896" on the handle. The blade is also stamped with the retailer's name, in this case Philadelphia's "Bailey, Banks & Biddle Co." This piece is in very good overall condition, in that it is free of bends, breaks, or other damag... Click for details